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Jan 26, 2011

Tara rated it:

Offensive.

I'm unhappy I feel a need to write a scathing review about a book dealing with an issue I care passionately about. But Skinner's book was tremendously offensive, and worse: misleading.

Skinner deliberately shies away from discussing the more insidious forms of slavery, because they do not prove his thesis: neo-conservative evangelicals are working hard behind the scene to eradicate slavery (and we need more neo-conservative policies to end it!) It's shocking tha More...

2 comments like (5 people liked it)

Feb 15, 2010

Vanessa rated it:

It is remarkable that author Benjamin Skinner was able to "bear witness" to the horrors in this book and not go mad/break down in a weeping puddle/take up whatever blunt object he had to hand and bludgeon the crap out of the slavers, traffickers and abusers in this travelogue of Hell on Earth. This is a very difficult book to read, but an important one. I cannot "recommend" it because it is too painful. All I can say is that if you want to find out more about modern day sla More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 11, 2008

Brian rated it:

The author goes undercover to reveal how shockingly easy it is to purchase a fellow human being in many parts of the world. In doing so he reveals some surprising and not-so-surprising facts.

Surprising: There are, literally, millions of slaves in the world today.

Surprising: George Bush has done more than any other American president to combat modern slavery.

Not-So-Surprising: The Bush administration's efforts to fight slavery are completely watered down and t More...

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 27, 2011

Donna rated it:

A very well researched exploration of modern day slavery, its causes, its consequences, and what is being done, or in some cases not done, to combat it. While our politicians and even church leaders are arguing the details of what does and does not constitute slavery 27 million people world wide are still held in bondage. The author travels from Haiti, to Romania, Moldavia, Amsterdam, India, and yes even America, to tell their stories. Though the scholarly research provides credibility it is More...

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Jul 11, 2011

Nicole rated it:

(From my wordpress blog.)

What is slavery? E. Benjamin Skinner explores this question in his book, A Crime So Monstrous: Face-to-Face with Modern-Day Slavery. Skinner's offering is a well-written, bold account of his 4-year journey through the underground world of human trafficking and exploitation. He is unflinching in his accounts, and despite what he has seen, brings a voice of compassion and hope to a topic that many people are either unaware of or are only beginning to realize.
More...

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Sep 17, 2009

Tamora rated it:

Slavery is forced work, under threat of or actual violence, for no pay.

I already knew that slavery exists in our time. I knew it exists as multi-generational debt bondage in India, when one member of a family got a loan, and his grandchildren labor to pay off the much larger amount (there's interest) with no sign of ever getting free. I knew of sexual trafficking in women from eastern Europe and women and children in Thailand, the Philippines, and Mexico. I did not know that the p More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Sep 26, 2008

Laura rated it:

There are 27 million slaves living in the world today --- more than at any other time in history. In the U.S., 13,000-17,000 slaves are trafficked annually into our country. If you read only one serious book this year, make it this one.

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Mar 23, 2009

Frenje rated it:

I'm not sure I'd recommend people to read this book, but I'd definitely recommend people to go read about modern slavery. Skinner does a good job introducing his reader to the different forms of slavery that still exist today, beyond the sex trafficking that most people are now aware of, and get you thinking about how slavery should be defined. Some of these anecdotal accounts were so alien to me, I couldn't help but feel that he must surely have been talking about another age, which I think is More...

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Mar 02, 2011

Valerie rated it:

I'm rounding this up to 4 stars from 3.5. While it's important to his ultimate point, I felt like the author spent too much time on the character study of American politicians. At the end of the book, his points on the failure of American politics to adequately address this issue were quite poignant, but I felt they would've carried as much weight without all of the personal back story of the characters involved. Skinner tells the slaves' stories carefully and skillfully, and I appreciated th More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

May 24, 2009

Maggie rated it:

Benjamin Skinner did a very good job of tackling a tremendously complicated and difficult subject in this book. As he points out, there are more slaves in the world today than ever before, but they represent a smaller percentage of the world’s population than previously. “Slavery is a slippery and confounding evil, and persists despite twelve international conventions banning the slave trade, and over three hundred international treaties banning slavery.” It’s been estimated that there are 2 More...

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Jul 19, 2011

Marissa rated it:

I truly enjoyed the format of this book. The author gave us both personal stories of modern day slaves and an overview of the players behind the politics of this ongoing war. It is easy to connect with the strong emotions of all of the characters involved from sex slaves and forced laborers to the many groups fighting to find justice for these victims. It is shocking that these types and numbers of slaves are still found in this day and age. This book was a true call for help and after readi More...

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Feb 23, 2010

Stephanie rated it:

Its hard to say that I "really liked" this book because it is a about something terrible. I am so glad I read it though! I decided to read it because it has the story of a friend of mine in it: Bill Nathan. Bill is Hatian and he was so kind to me everytime I was in Haiti and stayed at his guesthouse. I had no idea about his past, except that he was a former restavik (slave). This book will open peoples' eyes to what is really going on out there with child "trafficking" More...

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Mar 19, 2011

Julie rated it:

Non-fiction on modern slavery and the efforts of the US to fight it in 2000-2008. Four areas are profiled with the US parts between. All in all, interesting and sad, and readable. If you want to know more read below.

Haiti (prior to the earthquake, which makes an already bad situation worse) is profiled with the restaveks, or slave children "stay-withs". Poor families give up their children to wealthier families thinking they will get an education and a better life. Thes More...

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Sep 15, 2008

Jason rated it:

As free citizens in a political democracy, we have a responsibility to be interested and involved in the affairs of the human community, be it at the local or the global level.
Paul Wellstone

Slavery continues today. Skinner concisely defines a slave as a person, forced to work, through threat of force, for no pay beyond subsistence. The scope of modern-day slavery is vast: there are more slaves today than at any other time in human history.

Because of this scope, Ski More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 17, 2010

manni rated it:

please read Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy for a brilliant analysis of modern slavery.

not only is kevin bales a better writer, but the content is better.

also, skinner uses the book as a platform to tout his politics. i happen to disagree that slavery will instantly disappear when the government lifts its controls of big business. More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 21, 2009

Elia rated it:

This book is really heavy and it makes me feel like the world is a much less kind place than I previously thought. Skinner raises all the questions, but doesn't really provide any answers, but that's probably because there are no pat solutions for the majority of enslaved people. "Setting them free" isn't much of an answer when they've got no place to go and no life skills. Still the book was very engaging, very educational, and should probably be on the must read list of every huma

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Jun 07, 2009

Thomas rated it:

For anyone who believes that slavery is a thing of the past this book is required reading. There are more people enslaved today than at any other time in history. This book, and the people who suffer enslavement throughout the world (including in the United States), will not soon leave your thoughts. If we are going to create a more just world we must make ourselves aware of how significant the specific challenges are that we face. A Crime So Monstrous is an important piece of that work.

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May 18, 2010

Tim rated it:

Although this book reveals a rare positive side of the George W. Bush administration (of which I was unaware and reluctant to accept), it is still a well researched qualitative study of contemporary slavery (defined as "a human being who is forced to work through fraud or threat of violence for no pay beyond subsistence"). We are living in a time when there are more slaves than at any other time in world history (in part due to population increases, as the percentage is not the highest More...

1 comment like

Aug 18, 2009

Judith rated it:

Read this only if you have a strong stomach. This book reports that there are more slaves in the world today than there have been at any time in history. It is a devastating look at the poverty, exploitation, and organized crime involved in human trafficking. Yes, even in suburban America. Is there no end to the cruelty man will inflict on his fellow man? How can human beings treat each other so badly?

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Jun 06, 2009

Claudia rated it:

I'm learning that sex trafficking is something that happens everywhere and this includes the U.S. But I'm still shocked at people from all walks of life that can be involved in this. It makes me think of Sartjee Bartmann, a woman in South Africa who was told by a British soldier that she could have a better opportunity in life by leaving with him to go to to England. He promised her a better lifestyle,but he tricked her and later put her in the circus. He was so captivated by her sexuality that More...

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Jul 28, 2008

Kari rated it:

This book was very hard to read. And yet, it was riveting, I couldn't put it down. Mercilessly, Skinner takes you inside the realities of human trafficking around the world, from Haiti, to Romania, to the Sudan, while looking at the political history of the modern anti-trafficking movement in America. More political and more personal than some more research-oriented books on the topic, like Kevin Bales', this book has an immediate, journalistic feeling that leaves you with the experience of bein More...

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Mar 18, 2009

Flourish rated it:

This was a good book. While I knew that slavery was real and significant, I had never seen many different modern slavery situations put into the context of each other. The writing, however, wasn't to my taste. I suppose it suffered because I was reading it side by side with William Stegner, but I wanted it to feel less journalistic, more measured. I don't know - maybe I was looking for something that this book couldn't have possibly offered.

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Jul 15, 2008

Tim rated it:

Slavery exists! It is not something that died out in the 19th century. There are more slaves today than there ever have been, though they make up a smaller proportion than ever before.
Skinner poses as a person interested in purchasing a slave/slaves in order to discover and report on modern slavery. He meets with hundreds of slaves and with many slave traffickers.
I learned that this is something worth learning more about. As the only superpower, the U.S. is in a posit More...

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Nov 26, 2010

Sandy rated it:

Not easy to read, because the subject is so horrifying, but an important topic that gets inadequate attention in the media. So kudos to Skinner for his research and work to bring the facts to light. I'll never hear the word "trafficking" again without thinking it should be called what it really is: slavery.

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Sep 01, 2010

My Bookshelf rated it:

This had been on my To Read list for awhile, and I finally started reading it in June of 2010. It took me some time to finish it as the material is upsetting and infuriating. The firsthand reporting on slavery is outstanding; the analysis of US policymakers and anti-slavery efforts is considerably weaker.

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Oct 19, 2008

Karen rated it:

You must read this book. The stories are horrific, the real-life characters are haunting, and the reality of it all is overwhelming and disgusting. No, it's not a "fun" read, but it's a necessary read.

Skinner will open your eyes to the reality that slavery not only still exists today...but in much larger numbers than you can imagine. In recent years, the only type that has made news is sex trafficking, but that covers only a small minority of modern-day slaves.

More...

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Sep 10, 2008

RussBear rated it:

Almost all of us assume that slavery ended more than 140 years with the Civil War, but in E Benjamin Skinner's "A Crime So Monstrous" we learn that slavery is still alive and well around the world and that there are an estimated 18,000 slaves currently in the U.S. In fact, it is estimated that there are more slaves today than in any other time in human history.

Skinner takes his readers on a journey around the world and gives us the heartbreaking life stories of about a half More...

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Feb 10, 2011

Angela rated it:

Too much to read in one sitting.....a frightening look into the reality of modern slavery, and the horror that people still inflict on each other.

I realize the author's intent was to educate, but was left feeling a bit overwhelmed with practical and tangible ways to get involved.

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Nov 13, 2009

Christopher rated it:

The true story of the Author's foray into the world of modern slavery. There are more slaves in the world today than at any other time in history and Benjamin Skinner shows the reader just how close to the surface it is.

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Aug 20, 2010

Heather rated it:

Skinner went undercover for five years to dig up information about slavery in different parts of the world. Although the writing was a bit dry at parts, I learned a ton and the real-life stories really hit me. It's difficult to understand how slavery can exist in the year 2010, but this book explains some of the factors and what has to be done in order to fix it.

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